In this article, we will take a look at the key advantages of SaaS software development for outsourcing. The thing is that this business strategy, so to say, has gained wide popularity within past years for starting new produce. Take a look at the highlights to take this information into account and take advantage of it for your own business plans. It has proven to be one of the best options for several good reasons, which we are going to discuss.
SaaS Development: Main Reasons to Choose for Outsourcing
SaaS product development has emerged thanks to the rise of Cloud storages thus giving numerous opportunities to the businesses that wish to provide their services online. The secret of success and popularity lies in SaaS development life cycle, team structure, and applied tools that allow creating apps with a number of great and useful features.
SaaS software development is applied in different fields, including office and messaging software, accounting, invoicing, CRM (customer relationship manager), ERP (enterprise resource management), HRM (human resource management), payroll processing software, management software, service desk management, etc. It can be quite a benefit for the companies, facilitating inner communication or other important processes by reducing the time and costs.
Apart from its application possibilities, SaaS outsourcing help companies save costs, are perfect for communication, file and data sharing, facilitate managerial responsibilities, as well as help to complete projects faster and quickly find the right people to complete certain tasks. Let’s discuss all of these aspects in more detail.
What is SaaS Development? The Meaning Behind Abbreviation
So, what is SaaS development? What is the meaning that we can understand from the abbreviation?
SaaS (Service as a Software) is cloud-based software distribution. It’s a delivery model that’s available by the third-party over the internet. There is no need to install software on your computer, you just have to log in into your account. SaaS software is offered usually on a monthly subscription basis for companies. As the SaaS applications are cloud-based, everyone can have access to them via any device. The only thing you need is an internet connection. This perfectly works for the companies, as your staff will also have personalized access to the software.
Here is the first advantage of SaaS outsourcing, there is no need to recruit IT specialists to install the needed software on every computer in the office. Being cloud-based has its advantages, as you have immediate access to the applications, can work with them from any device, provide access to all your staff without any fuss. You don’t have to worry about the updates, as the third-party providing SaaS software will be in charge of it.
Why Outsourcing SaaS Development Company is a Good Idea for Your Business?
The answer is quite simple - it takes off you a lot of extra duties, as SaaS development providers will be in charge of the software and will provide you with all the essential resources to complete the project in you have in mind.
Why outsourcing may be the best idea? We will discuss all the aspects, but for now, it’s important to say:
- it lowers costs for the project;
- there is no need to recruit new team members;
- it makes timeframes shorter to complete the projects and launch the product;
- it will help you quickly meet market demands.
These are the key reasons to cooperate with professional, experienced and established SaaS platforms. You save your time, you don’t have to spend months searching for the right candidates, you can complete app development faster. Apart from this, you will be able to launch the product quickly and take your place on the market.
SaaS Product Development Strategy: Things to Keep in Mind
When starting the project, you should have a strategy. In case you find it difficult or you lack knowledge in some aspects of the process, you can outsource the team to take care of it. Still, there are important things to remember when working on SaaS app.
SaaS application should bring some value to the customers. In other words, your target audience should see a need in using your product. The application should have functional tools, account management, analytics, user-centred design. Outline the main purpose of your app, state the basic functions, and gradually add more advanced ones. This strategy has proven to work best for SaaS apps.
Team Structure In SaaS Development
Quite often we lack the human resources within our company to develop a perfect product that will be constantly maintained and updated in accordance with the latest changes. This is another reason for you to consider outsourcing SaaS team rather than setting your own one, as you can delay the product launch for months.
In any case, you will need:
- Project manager;
- Cloud solution architect;
- Back-end developers;
- Front-end developers;
- UI/UX designers;
- QAs;
- DevOps specialists;
- Administrators.
Team arrangement won’t be hard if you know your needs, estimate timeframes and budget, decide on the complexity of the app, choose the appropriate technology stack, but it definitely is time-consuming and requires to do extra work.
Life Cycle In SaaS
If you are interested in building and marketing the app in the most successful and efficient way, you should know the SaaS product development life cycle. There are the following phases that can ensure constant delivery and excellent product implementation:
1. Envision
No successful product creation and implementation are possible without a detailed business plan. Think of the opportunities provided by the cloud services and specify what you want to deliver to your customer. Always think ahead by taking into account both technical development strategy and marketing one, so you know where to find new customers or business opportunities before the product is developed and available.
2. Evaluate the Platform
Choose wisely SaaS application framing platform, as it should have all the necessary tools to complete the project. The task at this phase is to determine whether it’s possible to successfully implement required features on the chosen platform.
3. Plan
During this phase of product creation, you should analyse all the project requirements and create technical specifications for developers.
4. Choose Subscription Model
Here you finalize all the decisions relevant to cost and architecture, as well as think of the proper backup and disaster recovery plans.
5. Develop
The name of the phase says it all. During this one, the core features are built and scalable software architecture is created. This phase will also involve testing in order to evaluate the performance.
6. Operate
Once the service is deployed, you should provide constant application updates and security checks in order to keep up with clients expectations.
You need a well-prepared team to easily move from one phase to another and complete the project. So, it will be easier to outsource the SaaS platform, rather than starting from scratch.
Guidelines
Saas development is not an easy task, so considering outsourcing might be the right option. But still, you have to know the main steps that should be undertaken in order to develop an app that will meet market demands.
Identify the concept: the only thing that works best for the new businesses nowadays is uniqueness. You should find the field that is not occupied and is not well-developed yet, where you can start and reach the top position.
Think of SaaS functionality: features of the app should correspond to the client’s needs.
Technical stack: choose the best tools that will help you present the main features of the app.
Determine the budget: outline the costs by taking into account the tools you use, specialists to work on your project, planned features.
MVP (minimum viable product): the app should be able to easily deliver the product and target the right audience.
Improvements: SaaS app is convenient for both the company and its users, as it is easy to maintain and upgrade on a constant basis.
Tools For SaaS Development That Make Products Great
SaaS software development requires the latest and most efficient tools to create efficient products that will keep up with the fast-growing and changing technological world. When choosing a platform, you should take into account different aspects to find the best solution for your ideas and be able to deliver the product you want to.
We have chosen the most popular tools that can help you with various technical aspects of your product creation.
Server-Side:
Being identical to server-side technologies for web development, you should choose the tools based on customization, easiness in use, documentation, and community support. The tools that share these characteristics include RoR, Node.js, .NET, PHP, Java, Python.
Front-End:
One of the best frameworks is JavaScript, but apart from it, you can use Angular, Vue.js, React.
Providers:
It is not an easy way to build platforms for cloud management, it is expensive in terms of costs and workforce. There are such cloud platforms as Azure, Heroku, Google Cloud, AWS that provide the necessary software, DevOps tools, and hardware.
Database Management:
MongoDB and MySQL are among the best sources for database management.
Analytics:
Analytics matters in every business field. Talking about SaaS you can use Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Baremetrics, that have proven to be the most suitable and effective ones.
SaaS Development Costs
In comparison with the traditional software installation for the enterprise, SaaS costs are lower, as providers offer month subscription fee based on usage parameters, for example, the number of app users.
Providers usually offer a price that is competitive with the on-premise software. Thanks to SaaS services there is no need to buy expensive software or hardware to support it. It allows companies to have predictable budgeting, as well as to terminate SaaS offerings to stop spending costs on unnecessary things.
Conclusion
SaaS development outsourcing has great advantages that we have discussed. Although there are some cons (like lack of control, connectivity requirement, slower performance, a limited number of applications, etc.), still it is a popular way to provide services, make revenue, and facilitate some aspects of work within the company. To put it concisely, the key advantages of outsourcing SaaS development include:
- lower costs;
- quick set up;
- constant upgrades;
- easy access;
- scalability.
All of the above information will help you make up your made and choose the best for your business.
Talk to our experts in enterprise software development and find out more about the topic and how your business or project can start benefiting from it today!
